TheIndustry.beauty Awards Winners' Interview: Henrietta Norton, co-founder, Wild Nutrition

In this series, TheIndustry.beauty continues to celebrate the achievements of the winning brands from TheIndustry.beauty Awards 2025 through a collection of dedicated interviews.

With the Awards dedicated to 'The Innovators' of the industry, we set out to uncover the forward-thinking strategies behind their success. From our winners, we discover everything from the importance of innovation and the trends influencing the next wave of beauty to the biggest opportunities and challenges facing the sector today.

Wild Nutrition is a UK-based wellness brand co-founded in 2013 by Henrietta and Charlie Norton, driven by Henrietta’s experience as a nutritional practitioner and her frustration with synthetic supplements.

The brand specialises in Food-Grown supplements - formulations made from whole-food sources for better absorption. Its range includes vitamins, minerals, probiotics, and targeted support for women’s health, pregnancy, menopause, beauty, and stress.

In an exclusive interview with TheIndustry.beauty, Henrietta Norton, co-founder of Wild Nutrition, discusses the brand’s award-winning product and the rapid evolution of the wellness and supplement category in recent years. She also shares her perspective on the biggest opportunities and challenges currently shaping the beauty sector, alongside insights from award sponsor Marks & Spencer.

What are the core values that drive Wild Nutrition and how are they reflected in the business?

From the beginning, there have been three core values that drive everything we do in the business.

The first is Human: our commitment to our community, both inside and outside of our business. The second is Intelligent: our commitment to our products and our founding mission to empower women with education and efficacious products, transparently and ethically.

And the third is Wild: our commitment to our environment and our footprint on this planet. Our reverence for nature is at the heart of our business and the reason why we use - and relentlessly source - powerful, natural ingredients that have as minimal an environmental impact as possible.

The wellness and supplement category has evolved significantly in recent years. What do you think is driving this shift, and why are more consumers turning to beauty solutions that support from within?

It is an exciting industry to be in, and there are a number of factors shaping this evolution. Consumers are increasingly knowledgeable and aware that health, wellness, and beauty are interconnected, and that prevention is power. We are also seeing a desire for transparency and clean ingredients; people are paying closer attention to what they put in - and on - their bodies, which is excellent. We have also seen significant growth in research and scientific development, especially with natural ingredients, and this is driving innovation and giving greater clinical credibility to an inside-out approach to beauty.

Collagen 500 Plus won at TheIndustry.beauty awards. In your view, what set this product apart and resonated most with the judges (and wider consumers generally)?

Collagen 500 Plus stands out because it is built around two scientifically backed ingredients that clearly differentiate it from ‘standard’ collagen on the market. Firstly, the collagen peptides are hydrolysed to a significantly lower molecular weight - 500 daltons (versus around 3000 for standard collagen) - which has been scientifically shown to be the optimum size for absorption through the gut, becoming bioactive within minutes of consumption, much faster and more efficiently than the 2–3000 dalton weight of standard collagens.

Secondly, we have paired our collagen with a patented form of silica called Mesoporosil, which also has superior absorption and efficiency in catalysing your body’s own collagen repair and regeneration. However, science is only one part of it, and the proof is in the results, which were experienced by the judges and our customers alike: visible differences in firmness, hydration, and overall complexion were seen within a few weeks.

What was the significance of winning New Product: Wellness award for Collagen 500 Plus?

It was huge. Firstly, it is wonderful recognition of the innovation and commitment to product excellence within our team, but it is also validation from members of the industry whom we deeply respect. Their belief in the product opens doors for future opportunities.

Can you share some insights into the development process behind the product? What were the key priorities you focused on to ensure the product delivered on performance and overall user experience?

Our focus is deeply rooted in both scientific rigour and customer experience. We place emphasis on finding natural ingredients that work and creating formulations that relate to our customers' needs. We are in constant conversation with them, listening to their needs and health experiences, and supporting them with solutions through our product development as well as everyday advice through our free nutrition consultations. Our relationship with, and care for, our customers is fundamental for us as a brand.

What do you think are the biggest opportunities and challenges in the beauty sector today?

Personalisation and dermaceuticals will continue to grow and the increasing demand for ‘clean’, natural and scientifically backed products will continue. The challenges remain supply chain transparency and volatility, misinformation and ingredient shaming driven by social media and influencer marketing and the ever changing regulatory framework.

How does Wild Nutrition maintain its position in the industry? What strategies are critical to staying ahead of competitors and meeting consumer demand?

We hold true to our values, which is integral to building trust in this industry and with our customers. Maintaining strong communication with our customers is vital; listening and responding to their needs has been paramount. This, married with an in-built curiosity and an appetite to find new, exciting, and effective ingredients - and ways to bring them to market - will continue to drive innovation and unique product differentiation.

What can customers expect from Wild Nutrition over the next year? Any exciting innovations or new product developments can we expect?

We recently launched our Weight Management Support, which saw unprecedented demand and sold out in a few hours. This is a really important area of health for us to be involved in, helping to steer the weight loss conversation away from deprivation and toward nourishment and overall health. We will be following this up with two more launches this year, and plenty more to come in 2026, including a gummies range for children, products to support attention and focus, restorative sleep, and digestion. We will also be expanding our reach in retail and providing wider access to the brand.

As the award for New Product: Wellness was presented by Marks & Spencer, we spoke with Head of Beauty James Mugford about how the British retailer champions innovation within the beauty category and what opportunities he sees in this space. He also discusses what it takes for a brand to stand out to him and whether he has any advice for brands looking to make an impact.

How does M&S champion innovation within the beauty category, and why is this important?

Innovation is at the heart of M&S, and in beauty this doesn't mean cutting-edge, never-before-seen technology or ingredients, as we aren't the experts here in the same way we are in Food or Lingerie. However, what we do intend to bring more and more of is accessibility for customers to the best market innovation, at M&S prices - always building on our position as Britain’s most trusted retailer, with proven efficacy in every product, transparent testing, and clear communication. Innovation is key in beauty, as it's a category where customers want to try new things and experiences. In a busy and noisy market, we want to cut through with that combination of innovation and trust - products which really do work.

Why is beauty a key area of growth for M&S? What opportunities do you see in this space, and can you share any upcoming plans or initiatives?

It’s a hugely growing market, which we’re growing ahead of, but we still have a low market share - behind our share in fashion - and it is an area that has natural synergy with fashion. Customers tell us they want us to do more in beauty and that they want to shop with us, and our data shows that customers who shop beauty spend more money overall at M&S, as we become relevant to them in more ways.

Our focus is across three areas:

1) Improving and premiumising our product offer with own-label innovation and efficacy, increasing to offer branded quality at M&S prices, and implementing an aggressive onboarding plan to double our number of brands and bring market-leading brands our customers love and want to M&S.

2) Transforming our in-store and online experience - we’ve now renewed 30 stores, and have just launched our largest and best-ever beauty hall in Bristol Cabot Circus, as well as plans for a renewed Oxford Street store in December. Simultaneously, we’re investing heavily in the recruitment and training of our expert, impartial beauty advisors across 90 stores, alongside colleagues on our branded counters. Online, we have a full overhaul of the experience underway, to turn a website built for fashion into one fit for beauty, and we’ll make significant steps in that this year.

3) Becoming a brilliant partner to work with - enhancing relationships with existing and new own-label suppliers to improve innovation, and working hard on systems and processes to make sure we’re the best partner in the market for brands to work with.

Can you tell us about your buying and merchandising strategies for beauty? How do these strategies position (1) M&S and (2) the brands you work with for success?

Our strategy is to offer a complete beauty destination that meets all our customers’ goals and needs across every key category. We do this by balancing our own ranges with market-leading brands, creating a curated assortment that combines iconic, much-loved names with exciting disruptor brands. A core pillar of this approach is investing in best-in-class training and education for our beauty advisors, ensuring customers receive expert, personalised guidance. This elevates the in-store experience and strengthens customer trust in M&S as a beauty authority.

For brands, this strategy creates a cohesive and successful partnership. They gain exposure to our highly loyal customer base across the UK, as well as a retail environment that prioritises product storytelling, discovery, and education - ultimately helping them grow and thrive within our ecosystem.

In such a competitive and fast-moving beauty market, what does it take for a brand to stand out to you? Any advice for brands?

We look for authentic brands with a developed brand and product marketing strategy that is relatable to our customers. Furthermore, we look for a line-up of products that is market-leading, backed up by claims and reviews.

TheIndustry.beauty Innovators Awards is back for 2026 to recognise beauty brands and retailers who are pushing boundaries and driving positive change.  

This time, we have a new home: The Nobu Hotel, London Portman Square. We’ve added more categories to celebrate all of the achievements of our beloved beauty industry, including ‘iconic product categories’ as we recognise innovation doesn’t just come from new products.

We’ve also launched a new SUPER EARLY BIRD RATE, letting you save £100 on each entry!

ENTER NOW AND BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE.

For partner and sponsorship opportunities, please contact partnerships@theindustry.beauty for further information.

Supporters of these awards will not only benefit from being associated with supporting leading lights but will also gain from meaningful in-person networking, profile raising, and the positive association gained from supporting innovation.